“President Obama believes that the Second Amendment guarantees an individual right to bear arms,” Carney wrote. “However, the Constitution not only guarantees an individual right to bear arms, but also enshrines the freedom of speech and the freedom of the press -- fundamental principles that are essential to our democracy.”

Morgan has become an increasingly outspoken proponent of gun control legislation in the wake of the school shooting in Newtown, Conn. last month. He clashed with gun rights advocates hours after the killings and continued to engage people in debate on Twitter, as well as poke fun at supporters of the petition to have him deported.

Carney said Obama recognized Newtown “sparked an intense, and at times emotional, national conversation” about gun control, and posted a video the president recorded to respond to the numerous White House petitions on the subject. In the video, Obama said he supported the Second Amendment, but added background checks should be conducted to keep guns out of the hands of “dangerous people.”

The Morgan petition was posted on the White House’s We the People site Dec. 21 and quickly gained the required 25,000 signatures to receive an official response.

Petition organizer Alex Jones made a rambling appearance on Piers Morgan Tonighton Monday, where he said his petition was created to bring attention to anti-gun foreigners living in the U.S. who were trying to take away weapons even as the government increases its own arsenal.

“1776 will commence again if you try to take our firearms!" Jones said during the interview. The next day, Jones posted a YouTube video in which he said he feared for his life because of his gun rights stances, and added he was worried the New York Police Department or members of the mafia hired by New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg would kill him.

Watch Obama’s response to the multiple We the People petitions about gun control, as well as Morgan’s interview with Jones, below.